Tag Archives: bad breath

What Is a Dry Socket?

Dry socket or alveolar osteitis is a complication of delayed healing following tooth extraction. Dry socket occurs when the blood clot is lost from its socket exposing the bone to air, bacteria and fluid. Loss of blood clot can be due to excessive fibrinolytic activity caused by bacterial, salivary factors and etc. (For your information, fibrinolysis is a process that prevents blood clot from forming) In the absence of a blood clot, healing of the extraction site is delayed because soft tissue must grow from the gum margins to cover the bone and fill the extraction socket.

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What causes dry mouth and how to overcome it

Dry mouth is also known as xerostomia. Xerostomia is not a disease but a subjective complain of oral dryness resulting from reduced saliva flow. However, dry mouth can be associated with certain medical conditions such as diabetes , sjogren syndrome and etc.  This is why you should not ignore and get a professional consultation if you are suspecting that you are suffering from dry mouth.

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How to reduce cravings with a tongue scraper?

Ever wonder why you crave pickles or coconut or a ham sandwich? Chocolate and ice cream cravings make sense to many of us because they taste so good. But that’s not the only reason! We all experience cravings, some more than others. If you start to pay attention and maybe even keep a food diary, you can sometimes recognize patterns. Cravings can be emotional, but a lot of times they are your body’s way of demanding a certain nutrient. That’s why it’s important not to deny your cravings, but to figure out what they mean and how to meet them in a healthy way. Continue reading

How to cure bad breath

Bad breath is also termed as halitosis/fetor oris/breath malodor and foul breath. Halitosis is a term used to describe noticeably unpleasant smell exhaled in breathing. It affects a large proportion of population,estimated to be the third most frequent reason for seeking dental treatment , following tooth decay and periodontal disease. Bad breath increases during the day (maybe due to stress or fasting), eating certain foods (like garlic, onions,meat,fish and cheese), smoking and alcohol assumption. The mouth is dry and inactive during the night, the bad breath is usually worse when you wake up (morning breath)  Continue reading

What Is a Dry Socket?

pain after third molar removal

A tooth socket holds the tooth in place by connecting its roots to the underlying alveolar bone. After a tooth is pulled, a blood clot forms over the socket to protect the bone and nerves underneath. Dry socket also known as alveolar osteitis is a common condition occurring few days after an extraction where the clot becomes dislodged or dissolves. It attracts air, food, fluid and almost anything that enters the mouth which leads to bacterial infection and results in severe pain. Dry socket delay healing of surrounding tissues and alveolar bone. Higher incidence of dry socket occurs after removal of impacted mandibular third molars followed by upper molars, premolars, canines and incisors. It occur twice more often after single tooth extractions when compared to multiple extractions completed at the same time. It occurs in those around the ages between 20 and 40. Continue reading

How to Identify Symptoms of Trench Mouth

What is Trench Mouth?

Trench mouth is also known as Acute Necrotizing Ulcerative Gingivitis (ANUG) or Vincent’s infection. It is an acute

ANUG

 necrotizing inflammatory disease produced by endogenous infection where systemic changes, predispose the gingiva to invasion by bacteria. A recurring periodontal disease which results in necrosis and ulceration of the gums. It is a communicable infection of the respiratory tract and mouth extending to the tongue, palate, throat and pharynx. ANUG is a mixed bacterial infection with predominant groups of anaerobic bacteria, the fusiform, spirochetes and treponema. They present in large numbers in slough and necrotic tissue at surface of the ulcer and invade a small distance into underlying connective tissue, releasing toxins and enzymes. Trench mouth is a serious oral disease which causes severe pain and major discomfort. Inability to carry out good oral hygiene and poor nutritional status are the contributing factors of trench mouth. Other causes include smoking, increased physical and emotional stress, age, poverty and infections like HIV, AIDS and measles, malignant tumors and acute leukemia.

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Home Remedy for Inflamed Gums

Picture 1: Inflammed gums, where plaque had accumulated.

Inflammed gums is also known to the dentists as gingivitis. It is a common problem, but not negligible as it can worsen. Therefore, it must be treated as promptly as possible. When there is inflammed gums, there can be bleeding from the gums either spontaneously or after a mild provokation, like after brushing the teeth. There can also be bad breath and redness of the gums, and the gums can also appear swollen.   Continue reading

How to Tell If Your Wisdom Teeth Are Coming In

What is a wisdom tooth?

Impacted teeth

A person’s dentition comprises of a set of 32 healthy teeth. There are three molar tooth on each quadrant situated furthest back in the mouth used for chewing food making it 36 in total. Wisdom tooth is an individual’s third molar. The third molars erupt behind the second molars. The eruption process takes place around 18-24 years of age hence the name but can also erupt at a later age or remain absent. Incidence of at least one impacted wisdom tooth is high. They are classified according to their alignment in the jaw as horizontal, vertical, mesioangular or distoangular. Early detection of wisdom tooth impaction can be done with an X-ray taken periodically to evaluate the position of the tooth. Even in absence of any problem, early removal is recommended to avoid further problems in future as the roots are not fully formed and bone is less dense. Healing time and recovery is delayed in older individuals. Your dentist will apply pressure around the gumline to determine is the tooth is coming in successfully. Continue reading

How to stop snoring using a mandibular advancement splints

Snoring can be a very serious problem

Snoring is a common issue that plagues most household and can cause a string of other problems. It not only affects the sleep, hence the health of the bed partner, it is also an indication of poor health of the affected individual. Snoring is usually a sign of some form of obstruction in the airways leading to aspiration of air predominantly through the oral cavity. Hence individuals who snore are usually mouth breathers and can wake up in the morning with extremely dry mouth and halitosis or bad breath.

What is snoring related to?

Snoring can be an indication of a condition known as obstructive sleep apnea. Obstructive sleep apnea is a sleeping disorder where the affected individual can have significant narrowing of the airways leading to difficulty breathing. It is typically characterized with frequent pauses in breathing and the duration of each pause ranges from seconds to minutes. The frequency and duration is important in terms of determining the severity of condition as the more frequent and longer the duration of each pause, the more severe it is. Continue reading

How to Clean a Baby’s Tongue

© baby's tongue is coated

Oral hygiene practices are not limited only to adults but are important to children and babies as well. According to the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry, a child should have his or her first visit to the dentist approximately at the time of eruption of the first tooth (usually between 3 to 9 months) or by the age of 12 months the latest. When the child has special needs, this visit can be done earlier.

A child should have a few basic oral hygiene procedures during the first year of life for there is a general agreement among dentists that removal of plaque should begin as soon as the first baby teeth erupt. The parent plays an important role in this early cleaning to keep the baby’s mouth healthy. Cleaning and massaging the baby’s gums before the baby teeth erupt can help in establishing a healthy oral flora and help the process of teething. Therefore, even though your baby does not have any teeth yet, it does not mean that you do not need to keep his or her mouth clean. Continue reading